Authors note: I severly apologise for how long you all have been waiting. I really have no excuse for how long it took to put this out. I had plenty of time to write this but didn't. At any rate I'm going to write the future chapters at a length of around 2000 words unless epicness demands it be longer. It'll alow me to get these out sooner. But let me know if you all would like the chapters to be longer or shorter. And finally, I have an info drop for you:

The Jikoran troop transport ship is among the most feared vessels of the alien fleet. capable of survivng an atmospheric entry at angles that would incinerate other ships that would attempt the same. After breaching the atmosphere the ship would continue towards the ground only detaching the section of the ship containing the Jikoran troops a few hundred meters above the surface. The detached section is then more or less a balistic missile. This effect is further enhancedby the special shield that is projected that transfers innertia and inverts the kinectic effects of final impact outwards causeing a shockwave akin to the atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Each of these usually carry between 500-700 troops.

They had spent a week at warp five before reaching their destination. The planet was a small settlement near the badlands that was wiped out by the Cardassian military and Dominion forces for suspicion of harboring members of the Maquis and was forgotten about until now. Once they reached the system they wasted no time entering orbit and transporting down.

Avries came down with two teams of combat-type ArtForms. Avries himself was wearing a combat suit that was similar to the "knight" that came with him although his suit was slightly more bulky and less streamlined but provided the required protection. Looking around the ruined settlement, the buildings around them were nearly completely demolished, large glassed craters pocket-marked the ground around the settlement area suggesting an orbital bombardment. The grisly scene was made worse as several dozen skeletons of decomposed bodies could be seen strewn about. Some were intact while most were just parts caught in or nearby one of the many craters. Avries knelt down over a small body, possibly a child, and saw the tattered remains of a stuffed toy still clutched around one arm. Avries gritted his teeth while shutting his eyes tightly, trying to shut out the memories that began to flash though his mind.

It was still the first year of the Jikoran war. Bracers and Katana's had yet to be made. At the time Avries held the rank of commander and was the XO to the Hathaway 2.

He had gone planet-side on the Fairview colony to assist in the evacuation of the civilian population. It wasn't going well.

Avries and a remaining third of a battalion were standing guard at a small city using it to direct the dwindling flow of civilians though an underground tram station to one of the last star ports on the planet. Faint echoes of explosions could be heard in the mountain range to the south of the city where a platoon was defending the passage from Jikoran troops. Even in the city the crack of gunfire could be heard from snipers in the high-rise buildings taking out Jikoran soldiers that slipped past the front lines. Avries was looking over the shoulder of one of many radio operators.

"What's the count?" Avries asked him referring to how many refuge convoys still on track to their location.

""Seven sir, although three of them are under fire sir."

Avries nodded and gave the radioman a pat on the shoulder, "Send a squadron out to provide air support for the convoys under fire," he told him before leaving the room. Stepping outside Avries looked over the small city.

It had taken them four hard days to take it from Jikoran forces that were "cleansing" the area of all opposition. A lot of good people lost their lives here and still other places just on this planet let alone up in space above them and other colony worlds.

A sergeant came up beside him, a rifle slung over the back of his shoulder, "It's been pretty quiet since we cleaned out the town huh?" he asked as Avries looked on. Avries only grunted a response. "I mean, not that I'm saying that babysitting the civvies isn't important but it's just so dang boring. I'd rather be on the front lines putting those things down," the soldier said unslinging his rifle to prove his eagerness.

Avries gave him a sidelong glance, "Obviously you don't realize it yet, but soon you're going to appreciate these "quiet" moments," Avries told him flatly.

The soldier just shrugged in reply as Avries turned and walked back into the comm. room and approached another radioman, "Get me an uplink to the front in the mountains," Avries told him. After the brief chat with the soldier outside, he felt a tinge of paranoia and wanted a status update from the front lines in the mountains where they were holding off the encroaching Jikoran at a small choke-point of a mountain pass.

After several minutes the radioman nodded and handed Avries a head set. As he put it on he could hear sounds of gunfire, shouting and the occasional explosion. It was a sharp contrast to the almost serene setting of the city. "This is commander Ryan Avries at the staging grounds in Horizon city, requesting status update." As he waited he could hear sounds of someone moving through the still raging battlefield who must have gone inside a bunker as the sounds he could hear were dulled somewhat but was still fairly load.

"Master Sergeant Trent here sir, sorry for the delay."

"Where's your CO?" Avries asked him although he felt he already knew the answer.

"KIA two and a half hours ago sir."

Avries looked down at the floor leaving the soldiers reply alone, "How're you guys holding out?"

There was a heavy sigh on the other end, "It's a meat grinder sir but we're dug in deep and holding for now. We'll need resupplies and fresh troops soon."

Avries grimaced. He wanted to send some of the soldiers from the city up as some relief however minor it would be, even air support would have done wonders in easing off the pressure for them. But the troops in the city were needed to keep the evacuating civilians safe and whatever air support there was was already earmarked for escort missions. "Hold fast master sergeant. We'll send help when we can."

"Yes sir," he responded tiredness stemming from his voice as he knew what Avries meant.

Suddenly, on the master sergeants end, a crash from a door slamming opens followed by a voice of a very distressed soldier, "Sir! You need to come out here right now sir!"

Avries could hear shuffling, an indication that Trent was following the soldier outside. His guess was confirmed as he could hear the sounds of the battlefield get louder but somehow didn't seem to gain intensity. An eerie silence came over the comm. that Avries had to check with the radioman to see if the connection had been lost.

"Aw shit! It looks like we won't be needing resupplies after all commander."

The statement confused Avries, "What do you mean master sergeant?"

"Just look above us sir."

Avries did a quick jog out the door and looked up in the sky above the mountains to the south, what he saw made his blood run cold. Even though it was mostly a spec in the distance he instantly recognized it as a Jikoran troop transport.

"Listen commander. I know I have no right to ask you for a favor but before this op, I got in a fight with my girlfriend and we broke up. Her name's Michelle Adams and she's posted on the Hades Gambit. Let her know that I'm sorry and I love her." His voice was eerily calm as if he missed his girlfriend at the airport and decided to leave a message on her voice mail.

While Trent was talking, a large oval section of the Jikoran transport had broken off and continued its descent. As soon as Trent finished talking, seconds after, the detached object had slammed into the ground on top of Trent's position wiping out everything in the mountain pass.

Avries stared at the halo of dust and debris that had risen up over the mountains in shock and disbelief. He had seen this too many times but this was the first time he ever heard a man's last request. He could hear the low sound of static over the headset he was still wearing, "Don't worry Master sergeant Trent. I'll make sure she gets the message," he said before pulling off the headset and letting it drop to the ground.

Over five hundred freshly armed and ready Jikoran soldiers had broke their lines and landed on their doorstep.

Avries was motionless for a moment until he noticed the sergeant from earlier standing beside him. Without turning to the soldier Avries continued to look at the mountain range, "Well sergeant, you wanted to be on the front lines. You're standing on it now," he told him before going back inside to prepare for the upcoming battle.

Avries shook his head trying to force the memories from his mind. He didn't want to remember the events that happened afterwards. Still feeling the sting of tears threatening his eyes he stood up and turned to a knight standing beside him. The short-range transponder on the HUD of his helmet indicated that it contained an imprint of his XO.

"I want all the victims found," Avries had long ago stopped using the word "bodies", "Coordinate with the Federation officers, I want a name for each of them I don't care how long or difficult it is. Once that is done, either send them to their surviving relatives or have their funeral rites done according to their beliefs." There was something else he wanted but he will wait and talk to the Federation representatives directly about this slaughter.

"Yes captain," the XO's knight replied before moving off.

Avries looked around seeing everyone clearing rubble while recovering the dead. Avries clenched his fists. He didn't have to wait for the engineers to know that the aliens that did this wanted these people to suffer. He will make sure that all the aliens that participated in this will be tried as war criminals under DES law.

Meanwhile in the "top-most" sector of the Pursues arm in the Alpha quadrant, a small Ferengi shuttle was flying through a nursery solar system. A yellow sun surrounded by rings of rock and dust clouds. Two Ferengi were grumbling to each other in the cockpit.

"Why are we here?" one asked the other for the eighth time in the last hour.

"I told you before and I'll tell you again. The probes we sent out this way showed the presence of latinum," he told him condescendingly.

"We've been here for six days now and sensors haven't even detected gold! So why are we still here?" the first complained.

"Rule of acquisition number sixty-two: The riskier the road, the greater the profit."

"Yes well rule number eighteen says..." he was cut off by a beeping alert at the console."Sensors have detected a large object," the first said after reading the data off the screen.

"It's probably just another rock. Adjust course so we don't hit it," the second said more than a little bored.

"It's not a rock," the first said as he brought the shuttle into position to view the object.

On passing a dense dust cloud, an enormously large ship came into view. At twelve kilometers in length only a small portion of it could be seen in the cockpit window.

"What is this?" the first asked.

"...Profit!" the second said finally with a hungry smile.

Final author's note: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm issuing a call out request for the Ferengi characters at the end such as their names and personality. please review and PM me for the Ferengi characters.